Looking Ahead: Spatially Integrated Social Science Research

An audit of the international and domestic state of play in Spatially Integrated Social Sciences (SISS) conducted in preparing to establish RNSISS  points to the strong position already achieved by many researchers and research institutions in terms of adopting, fostering and developing spatially integrated social science frameworks and approaches. It is clear  that spatial analytical approaches can contribute to both theoretical as well as methodological debates in the mainstream social science disciplines and have begun to go some way towards developing an effective spatially enabled social sciences (Goodchild et al. 2000). A key issue regarding social science research generally, and for this Network in particular, relates to the likely future directions of spatially focused approaches and research in the social science community.

The development of a spatial focus in social science has generally occurred around wider changes in social life which changed the ways in which questions researchers asked were formulated and during a period when advances in spatial analytical tools, methods and data became increasingly sophisticated.

To the extent that this is the case, and given a background of continuing change it is pertinent to assume that the research focus outlined in this report will continue to expand. The future direction of spatially integrated social science approaches will rest on three issues:

Technological advances

Technological advances, including changes in statistical methods and tools and advances in the collection and dissemination of spatially base data will play a key role in the future direction of spatially integrated social science research. In the near term technological developments and the increased quality of spatial data will have profound impacts on spatial approaches in social sciences. Over the longer term information needs will drive technological developments. Individuals and groups of researchers will find new and expanded uses for new technologies, software and data.

The key issues that will lead to the continued growth in spatially integrated social science will be:

  1. Software and analytical tools:

    Software specifically aimed at spatial data analysis and the traditional tools of spatial analysis (i.e. GIS software) will continue to develop. The inclusion of spatial analytical functionalities into traditional statistical software will introduce non-spatial researchers to a spatial orientation. Additionally, the further development of traditional spatial analytical tools (i.e. GIS) into more user friendly packages and the marrying of these packages with spatially based data will extend the potential for a spatially integrated social science focus in research. With regard to this point, several examples of this type of analysis tool and data combination are available with the best known Australian example being the Australian Bureau of Statistics CData product, which combines ABS census data with user friendly GIS software - http://www.abs.gov.au

    Over and above the development of new statistical and spatial analytic software, the development of new ways to use old tools and methods will be important. One example of such an approach, which will help to expand spatially integrated social science approaches is the work currently being conducted by the National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling (NATSEM).  NATSEM, in close collaboration with the Australian Bureau of Statistics, and other organizations expects to rapidly improve the techniques involved with the production and use of synthetic patial microdata and spatial microsimulation. These new techniques have currently been applied to the creation of synthetic data for spatial analysis of poverty, wealth, housing and income. Major advances will be made in the next five years in developing the synthetic microdata and support analysis of key areas of government such as health, social security, taxation, child care and aged care.

  2. DATA quality and coverage:

    The past decade has seen a significant growth in the availability and quality of spatially based data. Further advances in the means by which spatial data is collected and the range of data which has a spatial identifier will result in increased use of a spatially integrated social science approach. Moreover, as the level and quality of spatial data continues to grow mechanisms for disseminating data will increase. An example of such a clearinghouse is US federal government’s clearinghouse for geographic data (http://www.fgdc.gov). The US federal government’s clearinghouse for geographic data is a decentralized system of servers located on the Internet which contain field-level descriptions of available digital spatial data.

  3. Data and analytical tool dissemination and research communications:

    An important advancement-one that has already been successfully used-will be the joining together of emerging spatial technologies with opportunities provided by the Internet for online access to tools and data. The clearing house for data described above is one example. Other examples include the use of interactive web servers to allow interrogation of spatial data bases. These interactive web servers have already begun to impact on the way data and analysis is disseminated and will continue to be of growing importance.

    An off-shoot of these types of web access pages are web sites that allow the user to undertake place based searches, such as the US Environmental Protection Agency’s zip code search which allows users to search for data across residential zip codes www.epa.gov/epahome/commsearch.htm and the Key Centre for Social Applications of GIS’s interactive spatial analytic products  www.gisca.adelaide.edu.au/products_services/interactive.html.

Shifts in the focus of concern with societal issues

As a spatially integrated social science approach is concerned with understanding a range of social issues, it is clear that the future development of a spatially integrated social science approach will in part depend on the research questions that continue to emerge in social sciences and how these relate to the approaches outlined in a spatially integrated social science framework. The increasing focus within society on issues to do with sustainability including environmental health, economic prosperity, social equity and quality of life will lend it self to further advances. Increasing interest in new areas will lead to new ways of thinking about space and place and hence new analytical tools and methodologies and new ways of conceptualizing and theorising social issues.  Within Australia, changes in the focus of national research priorities will also drive future outcomes.

Currently significant developments have taken place within the fields of geography and spatial econometrics. While other social science fields including sociology, politics and criminology have made inroads into SISS frameworks their involvement is to some extent still emerging and the inclusion of space and place both in conceptual frameworks and methodological approaches will continue and advance.

Recognition of the benefits of spatially based analysis to end users

Increasing recognition by end users of the benefits of applying a spatially integrated approach will further drive advances in spatially based research. The success of research centres such as the Centre for Spatially Integrated Social Science in the US and the Key Centre for Social Applications of GIS in Australia in promoting spatially integrated social science approaches in policy areas and with non-governmental stakeholders has and will continue to be important in advancing an understanding of the benefits of such approaches.

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